Nobody would talk to you. You couldn’t even get somebody to pick up trash. Today you wear a Columbus Zoo uniform to store, ask anyone here, they get stopped 10 times in that grocery store. “How’d you get a job at the Columbus Zoo?” “My kids want to go to… Read More
But that’s how proud, I’m so proud of these people when they wear these clothes now, that you don’t know. I love going, and when I’ve got my little ball hat in Montana, I don’t look like Jack Hanna, I don’t shave or nothing, anything like that. And I have… Read More
This is like the first time when I go on Letterman. It’s like the first time. It’s the first time, even though I’ve done it, hundreds of times. And when I do my speeches, like I did last week, four cities, I’m sorry, three states in six days. And boy,… Read More
When you’ve got your visitor paying their $10, $5, 20, 30, 40, $50, whatever. You just, I know I’m rattling on here. I’m just trying to tell you the things that I’ve learned over the years to make your zoo successful. Be yourself. Make sure that it’s, oh yeah, the… Read More
You’re on stage with your uniform that says Columbus Zoo. That means that you have to act like it’s the first time you’ve ever been out there. I do 80 to a hundred speeches a year. I do all these shows. It’s difficult sometimes to go in there, like it’s… Read More
You see how all fired up I am all the time. Yes, I may kick the bucket tomorrow, but I get fired up because of what I believe in. You have to remember something. It’s the first time maybe they ever came to your zoo. The first time they maybe… Read More
I say, “Tom, I’m not tattling on anybody. “I’m just trying to help the people.” And sure enough, he doesn’t even get mad. He just goes his nice way. How’s, that’s why Tom’s here, he’s like a godsend to me, right. It’s like the Lord provided me Tom Stalf. I… Read More
I told him the very same story. I’ve had, but I’ve gone through not one, not two, at least several dozen of these kids have passed on, but they spent their life, not because of me. They sit there and got to hold a penguin, smile for the probably the… Read More
You don’t think that’s powerful of what we do?… Read More
Now I encourage every zoo director. Remember that when you’re in this business. Go to your front gate and watch who comes in your gate, watch the joy on their faces, watch, you don’t even have to question them when they left your zoo. I know when people leave here,… Read More
I mean, that’s powerful. She died eight days later and that’s, that’s the epitome of what I do. Of what I brought the joy. I get emotional right now. That’s the epitome of what anybody could do. As far as what I’m concerned, you’ve, I don’t know if I’ve already… Read More
What’s the most incredible thing you remember, Jack, at the zoo all your life?… Read More
Then I let her hold a, held the penguin for her. So I went to wash your hands cause she was gonna hold a baby cat. I think it was a little serval. I was gonna wash your hands, her father looked, his, that father looked at me and goes,… Read More
I mean, a father was telling me the good Lord will wash her hands?… Read More
He didn’t want our hands washed?… Read More
Look at, zoos don’t have to, you don’t have to judge the zoo by the size, by the way. Some of you be, oh my God, my zoo’s 800 acres, my zoo’s this. Oh the wilds is 10,000, whatever. I don’t judge, when I go to zoos, help zoos, I… Read More
You know, let me tell you one quick story. I know we’re running behind, but I have to tell this story, because this is why I work here. About six months ago, a lot of kids with special wishes come here, and people with last wishes come here. If you… Read More
She said, “but all she wants to do is meet you “and maybe see one of your animals.” They came from a, like, I don’t know if it was Kansas, or where it was, flew in here. She came up here, she was in a wheelchair, this little girl. Her… Read More
You can’t get accredited unless you take care of your frigging zoo, and it’s still, I’m sorry, a few zoos today just ain’t getting it, because they’re not doing any better. And even some of them, I can’t go back to anymore. I’ll have a zoo once, twice, but the… Read More
Most incredible zoo. Fort Wayne, you saw Fort Wayne Zoo. Unbelievable. You don’t have to be, you don’t have to be 40 acres. You don’t have to be 10 acres. Zoo people need to know this. You don’t have to be like the Columbus Zoo, 600 acres. Look at Lincoln… Read More